Now an associate professor in the
School of Human Ecology
, Gershoff continues to delve into the impact of spanking (and other, more severe forms of physical punishment) on children. She also looks more broadly at the impacts of poverty, community violence and neighborhoods on child and youth development over time.

Is spanking still a common practice in the U.S.?

Most parents still spank, but they do it a lot less frequently than their parents did. Most parents who do spank do it once a month or less, maybe only a couple of times a year. So the prevalence of spanking is still very high (i.e., most parents do it) but the incidence is not (i.e., they don't do it very often).

Is it still the case that the vast majority of children in the U.S. are spanked by their parents at some point?

By the time American children reach middle and high school, 85 percent have been physically punished, either with a spanking or something harsher.

Can you sum up what research has to tell us about the effects of spanking on children?

There's been a lot of research on spanking, going back all the way to the early 1900s, and almost all of it has showed that spanking is associated with negative outcomes for children. It is associated with more aggressive and anti-social behaviors in children. The more frequently or severely children are spanked or hit, the more likely they are to have symptoms of depression or anxiety, both at the time they're punished and later. There is evidence to suggest that it erodes the connection between children and their parents, making children less likely to trust their parents. There's even evidence that it is linked with lower child IQ scores.

Several years ago, I published a research meta-analysis, which statistically summarized the outcomes associated with spanking across 89 studies. I found that the only positive outcome linked with corporal punishment was immediate compliance. The more children were spanked, the more they complied in that moment. Over the long term, however, and when their parents weren't there, spanking did not increase compliance. Even just two weeks later, it didn't seem to make a difference.

Connecting with a genetic relative is only the first step in the
DNA Relatives
tool. Once you've found a genetic relative, a little detective work might let you pinpoint who the common ancestor is. The DNA Relatives tool includes a couple of features that will help you explore your genetic relationship with another 23andMe user. You can also communicate with your genetic relative from within the DNA Relatives tool. As with the sharing of any information, we urge customers to be thoughtful about information they share; please see our
Privacy Statement
for more information.

In this article, we will discuss a few tips that might help you pinpoint your shared common ancestor:

The DNA Relatives tool estimates a predicted relationship to help you locate your
likely
recent common ancestor. The predicted relationship is listed under the Strength of Relationship column and again in the Relationship section (when you click on your genetic relative). By translating the predicted relationship to the likely number of generations ago your common ancestor lived, you might be able to identify which of your ancestors you share with your genetic relative. In general, for an "nth" cousin (e.g. n=5 is a fifth cousin), your common ancestors go back n+1 generations; so for a 5th cousin, you share great-great-great-great grandparents.

likely

You share great-grandparents with a 2nd cousin.

All humans have ancestors in common. You and your genetic relative share a somewhat recent common ancestor - that is, a relative who likely lived within the last 10 or 20 generations. Sharing all known family surnames, birthplaces of ancestors, a link to your family tree, noteworthy family stories, and other information may help you may come across a name that you both recognize, and can therefore identify that recent common ancestor.

If you and your genetic relative have established a sharing connection or your relative is participating in Open Sharing, you can click on your genetic relative to see where you share DNA. If needed, you can extend a sharing invitation to your genetic relative by clicking on his or her name and then “Request to share.”

If you happen to be sharing on the X chromosome, you can immediately dismiss certain ancestors as your recent common ancestor. This is because men and women inherit the X chromosome differently. Men only inherit their X chromosome from their mother, while women inherit an X chromosome from each parent. Since men inherit this chromosome differently than women, only certain ancestors could have contributed to the segments of DNA located on your X chromosome.